Himeko is a good drinker. And by that, I meant a really good drinker. She served us the 'snacks' she reserved for herself—from nuts down to skewered barbeque. Then she took out three shot glasses, filling each with ice cubes. We all sat down on the ground, a futon-like pillow serving as our seats. There is the couch, yes, but I followed what the two did. Theresa seemed more than familiar with Himeko's operations, I must say.
Apart from these, her house is very cozy. It is slightly colder than outside due to the air-conditioning. The couch held several assorted pillows. Theresa took one of them and hugged it beneath her chest.
When she saw how little Himeko poured on her shot glass, she immediately raised a complaint.
"Why is there too little? I can handle my drinks just as fine."
"I don't want to clean up someone's vomit again."
"I told you that was an accident..!"
Himeko's words made me pause.
Immortal cultivators possess strong resistance towards alcohol. Unless they are spiritual wines of the same realm as them, it would be impossible to get someone drunk. It just so happened that the win I brought was in the seventh-grade. The drunkenness from that spiritual wine stems in a bunch of Daos crammed onto one's mind. The wine itself sends the mind into a blurred state that focuses on reorganizing these Daos, thereby achieving progress in their cultivation.
I couldn't help but let out a few laughs. I didn't bother hiding my reaction, prompting Theresa to look at me with a resentful stare.
"How about this, Principal. Whoever remains standing later wins. Are you up for it?" I asked.
"Of course! Why not?"
She emitted a familiar bravado… similar to Sin's.
Why does it feel like I will outdrink Teriri later?
*****
Shi Tian's instincts are right. Himeko is the best drinker in all of heaven. The combo of alcohol, late-night binging of shows, and cultivation while sleeping is the pinnacle of retirement life. She did not have to worry about a lot of things, occasionally going out to visit her previous students at Saint Freya. All of them, without any exceptions, became immortal cultivators. Their attainments are at the Purple Mansion Realm, serving as instructors at Saint Freya.
The academy's status had risen to new heights after five hundred years. It is officially recognized as the number one immortal academy throughout Earth. The resources tilted on it turns bottlenecks into trifles.
Seeing her former students becoming successful gave Himeko a sense of accomplishment, and at the same time, a crisis.
Six hundred and seven years.
That's her current age.
One thought plagued her mind forever:
'Am I destined to become a bachelor until the end of times..?'
Similarly, an answer presented itself.
Shi Tian.
The matter of his 'Partners' having 'high-chances' of becoming his wives gradually became widespread as time passed by. Not only was it due to their beliefs in immortal cultivation. Shi Tian himself proved it by having Bronya and Sin as his wives. Now everyone tacitly agreed to that matter… which led to the remaining fifteen women to have varying thoughts.
For Himeko, it was her hope in escaping her bachelor status. Though aside from that, it all stems from her interest in this little guy. She could recall their first random encounter. She noticed Kiana's features and thought she was a part of the House Kaslana. White hair, blue eyes, and an unstoppable fighting spirit made up for Kaslana, after all.
Then…
There was no next time.
Himeko barely caught up with Shi Tian when he left the letter in Theresa's office. The next time she saw him was during the Moon Battle. Her impression of Shi Tian was the same as others. A kind-hearted hero who would fight alongside others to save the world. The nigh-perfect image made him farther than a human and more of a god, however. That was something that made Himeko feel off. Hence she wanted to know more about it.
Everything stemmed from curiosity, as any other who fell for him did.
"Wee…That grandfather of mine… left me hanging with a lot of questions..!"
Seeing Theresa put up a childish act, with her cheek pressing on the tabletop, made her sigh helplessly. Shi Tian happened to see her wear the expression of 'not seeing Mount Tai', which made him smile. Himeko was at a loss in meeting his smile, causing a tinge of red to appear on her ears.
His bright golden pupils emitted boundless wisdom as he looked down on the shot glass in his hands.
"It is best to leave it at that, I suppose. The Overseer, Otto Apocalypse… he lived too much of a complex life. Yet all of it ended due to a simple reason. Ironic, isn't it?"
While Theresa was drunk, a semblance of reason remained. She fell silent upon hearing his comment, sending her into a contemplative thought.
"Speaking of it, I haven't heard much of your side, Miss Himeko. If you don't mind…"
"Only if you share yours." Himeko put up a demand.
"Sure."
With Shi Tian's approval, Himeko began telling her story. From how she started as an MIT student who ended up becoming Schicksal's Valkyrie while investigating her father's death, she freely told them all. Theresa knew them already, so it was mostly Shi Tian who listened.
By the time she got to the point where she failed on multiple dates, she paused. The silent, expectant look that she gave to him told everything. And so Shi Tian spoke.
"I… came from another world."
His first sentence caught the attention of the two. Not once have they heard of his backstory.
"It was a normal and peaceful world. Basically Earth without the honkai. Everyone is troubled with normal things. It wasn't much, but I lived a good life. It wasn't until I died that I came to this world… to IX."
Shi Tian's unchanging nature is enough to surprise everyone. Not even the Aeon of Nihility could make him fall. That was with him still a mortal. As if that wasn't enough, he pushed through the honkai and led everyone to victory. Now, he's acting as the mainstay against the Aeons that threatened everyone's safety.
All of it sounded differently in Himeko's ears.
'...He went through unimaginable things...'